Saturday, October 30, 2010

(WASHINGTON, D.C., 10/28/10) -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today said a Muslim woman was verbally assaulted Tuesday in a Oxford, N.C., Walmart by a man shouting religious slurs. CAIR is calling for additional hate crime charges to brought against the alleged assailant.

A 31-year-old African-American Muslim who wears an Islamic head scarf reported to CAIR that an older white man first asked her, "Hey, are you Muslim?" When the Muslim woman replied that she is Muslim, the alleged attacker then reportedly shouted, "God damn you. F*ck you. Go the f*ck back wherever you came from."

The man also reportedly spit in the woman's direction and approached her in a manner she perceived as threatening. He was charged with ethnic intimidation and released. A November 29 court date has been set. The victim says she is now living in fear of retaliation from the alleged perpetrator or his friends.

"An American Muslim woman should be able to go about her daily routine without fear of being assaulted because of her faith," said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper. "We urge local prosecutors and the FBI to consider additional charges based on the apparent bias-motive of the alleged assailant."

Last week, CAIR's Washington State office held a news conference in Seattle with two Muslim women who were allegedly attacked at a gas station by an assailant shouting racial and religious slurs.

Other recent anti-Muslim incidents include an attack on a New York Muslim mother and child, the arrest of New York teens who allegedly harassed a Muslim student because of his faith and the defacement of a South Carolina mosque.

Mosques in California, Tennessee, New York, Illinois, Wisconsin, Arizona, Louisiana, Kentucky, Texas, and Florida have faced vocal opposition or have been similarly targeted by hate incidents in recent months.

CAIR's national office recently announced the launch of a department devoted to addressing the alarming rise of Islamophobic sentiment in American society.

American Muslim individuals and institutions are being urged to review advice on security procedures contained in CAIR's "Muslim Community Safety Kit."

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

"When I get on a plane if I see people in Muslim garb and they are identifying themselves foremost as Muslim I get worried I get nervous." Those comments from Juan Williams stirred up a national debate on the way Americans view Muslims.

Christina Abraham, the civil rights director of CAIR-Chicago joined us to talk more about their efforts to educate people about Muslims.

Seattle, WA (Somalilandpress) — A woman from Burien, Washington has been charged with a hate crime for physically and verbally assaulting two Muslim women at a Tukwila gas station last weekend.

The incident occurred at a Tukwila AM/PM gas station on Saturday evening when, according a charging documents, 37-year-old Jennifer Leigh Jennings accosted two Muslim women from Somali decent, calling them “terrorists” and “suicide bombers” before physically attacking them...

The Washington chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations held a press conference Thursday morning to denounce the attack and raise awareness for what some see as a recent spike in Muslim hate crimes. (More)

(SOUTHFIELD, MI, 10/28/10) -- The Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MI) today filed lawsuits against the FBI and the Michigan Attorney General for its non-release of video and audio recordings of the fatal shooting of Imam Luqman Ameen Abdullah last year by FBI agents.

The FBI, which led a multi-jurisdictional law enforcement task force that executed a series of raids that culminated in the death of Imam Abdullah, has denied Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests submitted by CAIR-MI for public information related to the case.

Information requested by CAIR-MI, including all audio and video surveillance from the crime scene in which Abdullah was fatally shot and documents relating to the multi-jurisdictional law enforcement raids, has not been provided by either the FBI or Michigan Attorney General.

CAIR-MI recently filed similar suits against the Michigan State Police, Dearborn Police, Detroit Police and Wayne County Sheriff departments for not releasing public information.

Civil rights and interfaith leaders recently expressed concerns regarding unanswered questions and inconsistencies in released reports after the Department of Justice (DOJ) Civil Rights Division released a report exonerating the FBI in fatal shooting of Abdullah.

"Now that various government agencies have released reports about the fatal shooting of Imam Abdullah, we are troubled that some law enforcement agencies are failing to release public information that has been requested," said CAIR-MI Staff Attorney Lena Masri.

Masri said CAIR-MI will release a report in the near future highlighting inconsistencies in currently released reports and raising questions that were left unanswered in the DOJ's superficial and premature report.

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

Since his election into Congress in 2006, Ellison's religion has often been a target of opponents. Islamophobia has once again been used as a campaign strategy in US politics as the founder of a controversial Tea Party faction targets one of the Muslim members of Congress.

Tea Party Nation leader Judson Phillips has called on voters to oppose Minneapolis Representative Keith Ellison in his reelection bid merely because he is a Muslim.

In a letter issued to members of his party on Tuesday, Phillips called Ellison "one of the most radical members in Congress," stressing that Ellison "is the only Muslim member of Congress."

Experts say much of that letter is not true, and contrary to Philips' allegation, Ellison is not the only Muslim member of Congress. Representative Andre Carson from Indiana is also a Muslim.

Since his election into Congress in 2006, Ellison's religion has often been the target of opponents. However, few have gone so far as to say that his religion alone was grounds for his removal from Congress.

"Every time Congressman Ellison runs for office someone tries to challenge him based on his Islam. What is really disconcerting is how brazen certain elements in our country have become in attacking Muslims," Corey Saylor, a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations told Press TV.

The dismissal of Juan Williams' from NPR once again exposes the difficulty America is having discussing Islam in a cool or rational manner. Williams' exchange with Bill O'Reilly featured much of the usual ignorance, with both agreeing that, although undefined "good Muslims" do exist, all Muslims must be considered potential soldiers in an Islamic war against America. This ludicrous belief is not only a distortion of reality, but also poses a serious threat to the well-being and security of the United States. In adopting this position, Williams and O'Reilly were reflecting the climate of hatred against Muslims that is fueled by prejudice and lack of knowledge.

The controversy comes in the context of the conflict around the Islamic center near Ground Zero, Pastor Terry Jones' desire to burn the Quran, a growing belief that sharia law is being imposed on America by Muslims, and increasing attacks on mosques in the United States. The interminable wars in Muslim countries like Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as the upcoming midterm elections, in which campaigns have employed heavy doses of anti-Muslim bile, also contribute to the darkening storm.

Today's high anti-Muslim antipathy is the latest wave of xenophobia in a nation that has seen many, especially when a threat was perceived to the country. While current anti-Islamic voices, like the hatemongers of previous eras, frequently attempt to co-opt the Founding Fathers' ideals to support their agenda, there can be no reconciling the vision of a pluralistic nation with the spewing of hate against a particular ethnic or religious group, in this case Muslims. While the debate stirred by these hateful voices is on one level about Islam and how to depict and understand it, it is also about the very definition of American identity.

Much of this bigotry and misinformation can be traced directly to what I am calling the infrastructure of hate, an industry which connects venomous anti-Islamic blogs, wealthy donors, powerful think tanks, and influential media commentators, journalists, and politicians. The most visible component of the infrastructure is the hate blogs, which have recently grown exponentially in number, influence, and stature.

From my position as a research fellow working with American University's Chair of Islamic Studies, Professor Akbar Ahmed, I have watched with horror as the hate blogs have begun to diffuse from their online cesspool to infect mainstream media, political rhetoric, and the larger discussion about Islam in America. There are hundreds, if not thousands of such blogs on the Internet. (More)

NEW YORK - October 27 - Today, the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), the Council on American-Islamic Relations of New York (CAIR-NY), and Educators for Civil Liberties, and Muslim Justice Initiative wrote Attorney General Eric Holder to request that the unduly harsh unjustifiably severe Special Administrative Measures (SAMs) regulations under which Syed Fahad Hashmi is being held under not be continued renewed when they expire this Friday. Mr. Hashmi has already suffered was kept under these harsh deplorable conditions of confinement for three years while of detention awaiting his trial last April, and has remained in solitary confinement and under SAMs since then. The impact on his mental health has been devastating.The letter reads in part:

Scholarly and medical research has overwhelmingly demonstrated the severe health effects of prolonged solitary confinement; military officials and Vietnam veterans including Senator John McCain have testified to its damaging results. The use of prolonged solitary confinement puts the United States increasingly out of step with world opinion and is an affront to American values of civil rights and humane treatment. Other people convicted of terrorism-related charges, including John Walker Lindh, Richard Reid, and Matt Hale have seen their SAMs not renewed. We ask the U.S. Department of Justice to not renew Syed Hashmi's SAMs and to end his solitary confinement.

The material support and services charges against Mr. Hashmi were based on the allegation that he allowed an acquaintance, Junaid Babar, to use his cell phone and to stay with him at his apartment in London where he was pursuing a Master's degree. According to Mr. Hashmi's indictment, he allowed Babar to store waterproof socks and rain ponchos in his luggage apartment that he Babar later allegedly later delivered to Al Qaeda in South Waziristan. Mr. Hashmi denies any intentional involvement with any violent organization, but accepted a 15-year sentence in a plea bargain when he faced a possible 70-year sentence.

For more information about Syed Fahad Hashmi's case, click here. To download a PDF of the letter click here.

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The Center for Constitutional Rights is dedicated to advancing and protecting the rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Founded in 1966 by attorneys who represented civil rights movements in the South, CCR is a non-profit legal and educational organization committed to the creative use of law as a positive force for social change.

If you noticed women throughout the Chicago region donning pink headscarves Wednesday, they weren't making a fashion statement.

They were participating in Pink Hijab Day, a growing campaign that is part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

What started in 2004 as a small health effort in Missouri has gone global, with Muslim women in several countries wearing the pink head covering to raise awareness about the cancer.

In Bridgeview, every girl at the Aqsa School showed up for classes Wednesday wearing the same-color headscarf. Girls too young to wear the hijab wore pink clothes. Boys in the elementary school sported pink armbands.

"It is an opportunity to use a symbol that we cherish to also promote a cause," said Tammie Ismail, principal of Aqsa School. (More)

(Washington, D.C., 10/28/10) -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today welcomed a resolution passed yesterday by the United Nations urging member states to declare the first week of February every year World Interfaith Harmony Week.

The resolution encourages member states to “support, on a voluntary basis, the spread of the message of interfaith harmony and goodwill in the world’s churches, mosques, synagogues, temples and other places of worship during that week based on Love of God and Love of the Neighbour, or based on Love of the Good and Love of the Neighbour, each according to their own religious traditions or convictions.”

The idea was proposed to the General Assembly in September by Jordan’s King Abdullah, and Jordan’s Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad presented the resolution before the vote on Wednesday. Prince Ghazi is the coordinator of the Common Word group, which promotes dialogue and understanding between Muslims and Christians worldwide.

CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad is a member of the Common Word group and was a signatory, along with 137 other Muslim leaders and scholars, to an open letter titled "A Common Word Between Us and You," which was sent to Pope Benedict XVI, Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams and more than 20 other Christian leaders in 2007.

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

(ST. PAUL, MN, 10/29/10) -- The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) today called on Delta Airlines to investigate recent allegations of religious profiling of Muslim passengers.

CAIR-MN is calling on Delta to review its policies on what constitutes suspicious behavior and to conduct trainings to help staff avoid profiling of passengers.

In one incident reported to CAIR-MN, four Muslim men were escorted off a Delta flight when it landed at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport last month. A flight attendant had reported suspicious behavior after one of the men dropped a pen while filling out a customs form and bent down to pick it up.

In another incident, a Pinnacle Airlines commuter plane operated by Delta made an emergency landing in Fort Knox, N.D., after a flight attendant raised concerns about a smoke detector in a lavatory used by a University of North Dakota Muslim student from Saudi Arabia. The student and two other Muslim students he was traveling with were detained and questioned by Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents and the local FBI for five hours, while the rest of the passengers were bused to their destination.

On Tuesday, a Muslim family in Tennessee was removed from a Delta flight operated by Comair at the Memphis International Airport. According to a Comair spokesperson, the "crew became concerned when a passenger exited the lavatory after an extended period of time and damage was found in the lavatory." Investigators found nothing wrong with the lavatory.

"Wearing 'Muslim clothing,' using the restroom or picking up a dropped pen seem to have become pretexts for religious and ethnic profiling," said CAIR-MN Civil Rights Director Taneeza Islam. "We believe these incidents are based on stereotyping that targets Muslim passengers and those perceived to be Muslim."

Ms. Islam cited remarks by former NPR analyst Juan Williams that seemed to legitimize profiling Muslim passengers. NPR terminated Williams' contract after he said, "[I]f I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous." Ms. Islam noted that none of the terrorists in past incidents on airplanes wore "Muslim garb."

In 2006, six imams, or Islamic religious leaders, filed a lawsuit against US Airways after they were removed from a flight in Minneapolis based on their race and religion. The imams and the air carrier settled out of court last year.

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties group. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

(HARTFORD, CT, 10/29/10) -- On Saturday, October 30, the Connecticut office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CT) will host an day-long educational event focusing on educating the public about the importance of preserving civil rights and civil liberties without compromising national security.

During this event, experts will highlight a number of topics ranging from the history of the civil rights movement to the FBI's use of agent provocateurs and informants in Muslim communities. Speakers will also discuss recent nationwide FBI raids on peace activists homes and offices outline legislation at both the national and local levels dealing with racial and religious profiling.

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

Washington — Discussions over Islam's place in America ahead of national midterm elections are prompting American Muslims to make their voices heard through voting.

Muhammed Malik, a South Florida Muslim community advocate, said debate over the Park51 Community Center in Manhattan, the rescinded threat to burn Qurans in Florida, and Muslim fears of racial profiling have created a positive moment in American history.

"When you look at it historically, we are really stepping up to the plate, I think, in very positive, peaceful ways that are really joining that great American tradition of becoming the fabric of this country," Malik said. "Once you get politically engaged, we become what people think of what it means to be an American."

The Council on Islamic-American Relations (CAIR) and the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) are acquainting American Muslims with the voting process. CAIR has released voting guides for 23 states that explain when polls open, how to register to vote, what identification is needed and voters' rights. (More)

Today I share my opinion about commentator Juan Williams - his statements on the Fox News Network and subsequent dismissal by National Public Radio-as well as my thoughts on the Council on American-Islamic Relations, NPR in general, conservatives who've adopted Williams as a poster boy and rabid congressional members who have found another reason to attack public broadcasting. ...

During an Oct. 18 appearance on Bill O'Reilly's program, in which the host was discussing his own criticized remarks about Muslims, Williams said:

"I mean, look Bill, I'm not a bigot. You know the kind of books I've written about the civil rights movement in this country. But when I get on a plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous."

Responding on behalf of CAIR, Awad said, "Such irresponsible and inflammatory comments would not be tolerated if they targeted any other racial, ethnic or religious minority, and they should not pass without action by NPR."

On Oct. 21, NPR released a statement saying it had terminated Williams' contract. That news ignited a firestorm of criticism against NPR, mostly coming from the right. Suddenly Williams was the golden child of the right wing. He quickly was offered-and just as quickly accepted-a $2 million contract to work for Fox. ...

First of all, Williams' remarks about Muslims were not only "irresponsible" and insensitive, but indeed biased. Even though he went on to say all Muslims should not be judged by the actions of a few, the damage was done because he already had articulated his bigotry (and we can debate to what degree) toward an entire group. That is clearly unacceptable.

CAIR, through Awad, was correct in criticizing Williams. Just as with the Anti-Defamation League and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, CAIR is a civil rights organization whose mission includes pointing out discrimination, fighting for equality and educating the larger public about the people it represents.

That said, Williams should not have been fired, at least not over that one remark. NPR apparently had other issues with Williams, but its statement specifically said the firing was for comments on The O'Reilly Factor.

For the record, CAIR did not call for Williams' dismissal. ...

Let's put an end to this ugly chapter. NPR did what it thought it should do, CAIR did what it is mandated to do and Juan Williams has gotten paid big time.

A sting operation over the course of months. Federal agents posing as al-Qaeda operatives. The text of the sacred Koran used to send coded messages.

When federal authorities arrested Farooque Ahmed, a 34-year-old Pakistani American, this week for an alleged plot to bomb Metrorail stations in Northern Virginia, Muslim groups in the area struggled with what to say publicly.

Should they condemn the man unequivocally and praise law enforcement? Or should they wait?

As details of the arrest trickled out, many in the Muslim community avoided saying anything to outsiders, but instead quietly voiced concerns to one another about the tactics used.

The ambivalence highlights the complicated and often fraught relationship between law enforcement and Muslim Americans - an alliance some say has suffered especially in the last year with the slew of sting-like operations within their communities.

Increasingly, Muslims believe that even as they work with the FBI to combat terrorism, they are being spied upon by authorities.

The impact of those suspicions has been profound. Imams say longtime attendees at their mosque have suddenly grown reticent to welcome new strangers and new converts. Some Muslims say they catch themselves watching what they say and to whom, eyeing people in their own community as potential informants looking to lure them into arrest.

"The relationship with law enforcement right now is tense," said Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a group the FBI stopped working with last year on outreach efforts. "There's a sense of being under siege in many Muslim communities. People just assume there are agents or informants in their mosque now. It's a fact of life." (More)

The new executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations-Oklahoma took office last week as several hot-button Islamic issues were in the news.

Oklahomans will vote Tuesday on whether to change the state constitution to forbid judges to use Shariah (Muslim) law in deciding cases, and National Public Radio fired black news analyst Juan Williams for saying Muslims on airplanes make him nervous.

Muneer Awad, an attorney from Atlanta, became CAIR-Oklahoma's second director, replacing Razi Hashmi, who left to attend graduate school.

Awad said CAIR is opposed to the anti-Shariah law proposal.

"There are so many levels on which we feel this state question is irresponsible and unnecessary," he said.

"It's constitutionally impossible for Shariah law to supersede or conflict with existing U.S. laws.

"Authors of the amendment are clearly targeting a religious minority in order to get people to the polls," he said.

On the Juan Williams issue, Awad said Williams' remarks were irresponsible, but "it is not our business to comment on" the way NPR handled it. (More)

(WASHINGTON, D.C., 10/30/10) – A prominent national Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization today applauded the efforts of law enforcement and intelligence agencies in the United States, Europe and the Middle East to foil an apparent plot to ship packages containing explosives from Yemen to synagogues in Chicago.

In a statement by the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations(CAIR), National Executive Director Nihad Awad said:

"We applaud the efforts of all the law enforcement and intelligence personnel who cooperated across international borders to foil a terror plot targeting Americans. We condemn both the plot and all those who would sow fear through attempts to harm the innocent.

"It is clearly against the teachings of Islam to attack places of worship. We offer our support to the American Jewish community, the apparent target of this plot."

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.